Yoko Tajima, a House of Councilors member, said Tuesday she will run in the April 13 Kanagawa gubernatorial race. The outspoken feminist scholar and TV celebrity announced her decision at a news conference in Tokyo.

She will automatically lose her seat in the Upper House when she enters the gubernatorial race. Tajima, 61, who previously taught at Hosei University, was first elected to the Upper House in July 2001 as the top candidate of the Social Democratic Party in the proportional representation segment of the poll.

In October, however, she submitted her letter of resignation to the SDP, expressing dissatisfaction with its management and its stance over the abduction of Japanese nationals by North Korea.

She will be competing against at least five candidates in the Kanagawa race. They include Shigefumi Matsuzawa, 44, a House of Representatives member who is supported by the Democratic Party of Japan and the Liberal Party, and Ryoichi Takarada, 55, a company executive backed by the Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito.